As you may have seen from my posts over the last two weeks, I spent some time recently in my favorite place ever - HAWAII. Ugh, Hawaii is so incredible...it pains me to leave it!

Anyway, part of traveling for me is SNACK PREP. I am always wondering where my next meal or snack is going to come from - and it sure isn't going to come from those gross packaged meals they serve on the airplane. Is that even real chicken? Definitely not. Anytime we are getting ready for a trip, I always make it to the grocery store a day or two in advance and pick up some must-have items to keep me happy and satisfied during the long journey ahead. I pack everything in ziplock bags so my snack stash is easy to find in my carry-on.

Here are my top travel food suggestions

1) Drink TONS of water. Seriously, buy a jug of it in the airport once you get through security AND accept the water they provide you on the plane - each time! Yes, you may have to pee a lot (I think I counted 8 times on our 10.5 hour flight to the islands), but dehydration is not fun. You might not event notice that you are dehydrated until AFTER you leave the plane and who wants a headache on vacation?!

2) Stock up on snacks. See some of my snack stash below! Fruit (pre-washed, and even pre-cut if you are going to eat it quickly), avocados, single serving nut butters, nuts, dark chocolate, veggies, kale chips, Lara bars, dried fruit (without added sugar) and granola all make great options.

3) If the flight is really long and you are missing a meal - prepare something ahead of time like marinated kale salad with lemon, nutritional yeast, avocado and tomato...or a brown rice wrap. You can bring it in a tupperware container, ziplock bag or parchment paper. If you don't feel like bringing something with you - find something in the airport that is not heavily processed (salad, veggies and hummus, something with guacamole). You can also bring a single-serving protein powder pack (veggie based, without lots of crap - like Vega One) and add it to a bottle of water on the plane.

NOTE that animal protein, dairy, gluten and processed foods will lead to discomfort at high altitude! (discomfort = gas, bloating, headaches, etc.) Stick to the cleanest stuff you can find and have a comfortable flight. Also note that most of this applies to a roadtrip as well!